Pats Pulpit
The New England Patriots will be down four on Thursday night.
Running back Rhamondre Stevenson, wide receiver Kayshon Boutte, tight end Austin Hooper and linebacker Christian Elliss have been ruled out for the AFC East meeting with the New York Jets.
Here’s the rest of the game statuses heading into the 8:15 p.m. ET kickoff at Gillette Stadium.
Stevenson has now been ruled out for three consecutive games due to a toe injury. The lead running back returned to practice on a short week in a limited capacity, yet was downgraded to sidelined on Wednesday. In his absence, No. 38 overall pick TreVeyon Henderson is slated to start again after rushing for 147 yards and two touchdowns against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Sunday.
What became a 28-23 win also did not include Boutte at wide receiver or Elliss at linebacker. Both will return to the inactives due to respective hamstring and hip injuries. Hooper will also be on that list 90 minutes prior to kickoff for the first time during his tenure in Foxborough. The veteran tight end entered the NFL’s concussion protocol on the heels of handling 34 out of 61 offensive snaps at Raymond James Stadium.
Two Patriots move into the divisional matchup as questionable. In the backfield, Jennings remained limited throughout Jets prep after being ruled out with a knee injury last Sunday. His absence sent veteran D’Ernest Johnson, a two-time standard elevation from the practice squad, in for one carry as well as blitz pickup. As for the New England’s other side of the ball, Farmer has stayed sidelined for back-to-back practices because of an ankle injury. The rookie defensive tackle stands with 11 tackles, one stop for loss, one fumble recovery, one batted pass as well as one start while appearing in every game this fall.
But linebacker Jack Gibbens, previously listed with a hamstring issue, has cleared the injury report after practicing in full. The March signing tallied a team-high 10 tackles and added a pass deflection during his latest start.
